This invention relates to endless track assemblies for use with crawler-type vehicles and, more specifically, to an adapter strip for use in such assemblies when the same are of the type including reversible track links.
Prior art of possible relevance includes U.S. Pat. No. 3,937,530, issued Feb. 10, 1976 to Sturges and assigned to the assignee of the present application.
Due to the extreme environmental conditions in which crawler-type vehicles are typically employed, considerable wear occurs to the endless track assemblies employed with such vehicles. Replacement of worn parts in the track assembly has long been a vexing problem because of the relatively rapid wear rate and expense of the replacement parts.
Sturges, in the above identified patent, discloses a unique endless track assembly for crawler-type vehicles wherein the cost of replacing certain assembly components due to wear is cut about in half. In particular, Sturges discloses a unique form of track link which is reversible. Track links typically have track shoes bolted to one side thereof while the opposite side rubs against the track roller on the vehicle. Sturges proposes to make the track links generally symmetrical about their longitudinal axis so that when replacement is required, rather than substituting new track links, the links are merely reversed and the track shoes applied to the sides of the track link originally in abutment with the track rollers of the vehicle and whereby the side of the track link to which the track shoe was originally secured is then placed in contact with the track rollers.
Such reversible track links have been generally satisfactory for their intended purpose. However, due to the extreme environment in which such vehicles are operated, foreign matter frequently enters the interface of the track roller and the track link forming significant irregularities in the side of the link originally installed in abutment with the track rollers. Consequently, when the link is reversed, an uneven surface is exposed to the track shoe and when the track shoe is applied thereagainst, it may tend to rock on the surface causing progressive loosening of the fastening bolts by which the shoe is secured to the link.